


Joui Chronicles

by SkyChasingDreamer



Category: Gintama
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Kid!Fic, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-01-17
Updated: 2014-07-13
Packaged: 2017-11-25 19:13:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/642105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SkyChasingDreamer/pseuds/SkyChasingDreamer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Follows the Joui from the time they're kids to when they're teenagers fighting in the war.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I

The village wasn't a big one, but it didn't need to be. It was clean and well put together, the houses and buildings on the smaller side, ranging from one to three levels. There wasn't much surrounding the village besides acres of forest and open fields. A river ran along the west side just outside the village limits, but it wasn't a big one. Long, maybe, but not large and there was a wooden bridge connecting the two banks. He hadn't really seen the rest of the village, preferring to instead stay in one spot for awhile.

Gintoki was wandering around the school house, not for the first time, to check things out – again. He'd been there for a few days and everything had been quite the whole time he'd been around, but he didn't trust that relative silence. It was too quiet and on top of that, definitely not the type of quiet he was used to because he wasn't usually inside a house or building. He tended to stay away from stuff like that, with the exception of when it snowed.

His bare feet made soft thuds against the hardwood and though he kept the sword held close to him, the bottom of it would sometimes scrape against the floor briefly before he hiked it up higher. He kept it with him most of the time and when it wasn't at his side, it was somewhere nearby, somewhere he could see it. The sword gave him some comfort in this strange new place and he needed that, so of course he kept it with him at all times.

He didn't dislike being in the village, he just... it wasn't somewhere he ever dared to dream he'd end up. Someplace quiet, clean, and welcoming that offered a place for him to stay, he never would have thought he'd find himself in such a place, especially when he was used to the exact opposite. The clothes on his back were new, though he'd already torn it in a couple places and dirtied the sleeves. This yukata actually fit, unlike the last one which had been too small for him for a long time.

Gintoki entered what Sensei had called the classroom, a big room with desks and a board to write on up front. He didn't know much about reading or writing, so already he'd been sort of put off by the place. But it was only one room and there were plenty of other places to go inside if he wanted, he was merely checking to make sure it was the appropriate amount of empty. Which it was and it was quiet, just the way he liked it.

He left the door open as he ventured further inside, looking at the different desks, though he wasn't at all curious enough to sit down at one. There was another door on the far side of the room, one that led outside, and along the wall were a few windows to let in the afternoon light. It wasn't late, Gintoki knew that much from the color of the sky, but it was getting to be and if things continued as they had during his stay, food would be served soon. He didn't care what was given to him, he'd take anything while he could.

The sound of approaching footsteps made him freeze and he stood stock still, frozen with his little fingers wrapped tight around the scabbard of the sword. There were low voices, footfalls on the slow side sounding cautious and light, too light to be an adult. Gintoki relaxed a bit at that, but then tensed right back up because they were getting closer, one less noisy than the other. Hightailing it out of there crossed his mind, but movement always attracted attention, so he remained still, hoping whoever it was would pass.

No such luck.

The door slid open and a head poked in, a boy with short hair. "See, I told you I saw a ghost."

A second head whose hair was in a ponytail appeared above the first one. "That's not a ghost, it's a boy. Sensei told us he was here."

"But he's so pale," the first, shorter, boy groused, eyes narrowing.

"So what?"

Gintoki stared at them, just stared, in such a way that he probably couldn't have looked less interested. He'd seen them before, walking around the village and outside the school house, but he'd never actually talked to them. In fact, he'd gone to great lengths on one certain occasion to make sure they didn't see him at all. He... really wasn't so good at dealing with others, what with his lack of social skills and general state of awkward. He had no practice being with adults and even less so with kids since he wasn't the type of kid normal people wanted hanging around, orphans were just extra mouths to feed.

And even though it might have looked like he was just staring, he was studying. Two kids were nothing he really had to worry about, he was confident that if they tried to gang up on him he'd be able to hold his own despite both of them being bigger than him, but obviously he didn't trust them, so he was wary. The way they were looking at him made him uneasy, too, it always did when he was under close scrutiny when he was more used to being ignored.

He held his ground as they entered the room the rest of the way and moved toward him. They jostled each other when they came to a stop not far away, neither taking their eyes off him, and the taller one took a step forward.

"Hello," he greeted with a bow, "my name is Kotarou Katsura."

No.

It was going to be Zura, end of story, and the kid was way too formal. In answer, since he was being stared at like a reply was expected, he raised a hand and started picking his nose.

"Gross!" The other kid curled his nose and it was kind of amusing the way it made his face look. "Does he even understand us?"

"Of course he does, now hush," Zura chastised, then said to Gintoki, "this is Shinsuke Takasugi. He's not so bad once you get to know him."

Gintoki wasn't all that inclined to either way, not much stayed in his life for long and he had no reason to think that this would be any different. Mining a booger out of his nose, he flicked it at them and was pleased when they both leapt apart to dodge it. He wasn't comfortable, still tense as he was, but the two boys didn't seem too terrible, though he'd prefer to be by himself. The uncomfortable feeling only got worse when Takasugi started edging closer, keeping a close eye on Gintoki's hands like he was going to start picking his nose again – which wasn't unlikely, all things considered.

"Careful, he bites."

Takasugi leered over his shoulder. "How do you know?"

"Sensei said so."

"What is he, some kind of animal?"

"Does he look like an animal to you?" Zura asked, staring at Takasugi in bemusement.

"Sorta," Takasugi said slowly, eyes on Gintoki then as he padded a little closer. "He's got silver hair... and red eyes." His face scrunched up again, nose curling as he leaned down a bit. "He's so weird."

Too close, it was too close.

There needed to be more space between them than there was.

Using the sword, he pushed it forward so the hilt tapped the center of Takasugi's forehead. His aim wasn't to hurt, only to distract so he wouldn't be grabbed at. He stood with the sword in tow, holding it with both arms as he scuttled off. He tripped and fell to one knee, a little distressed noise sounding in the back of his throat. Correcting himself quickly, he kept going, not looking back, but listening to make sure he wasn't being followed. There were only voices behind him, not footsteps, but he didn't slow. He tripped again as he entered the next room, but was able to use the sword as leverage to keep himself on his feet.

He had to cross a hall before he was able to get into the room he was staying in, a sizable room that was a thousand billion and then some times better than anything he'd ever had before. He didn't view it as his own or anything, definitely not. It was just a place he was staying, for how long, he didn't know. That wasn't something he thought about since he tended to take things as they came and though having a room and place to stay freaked him out, he wasn't stupid enough to take it for granted. He had a chance to sleep with a roof over his head, of course he wouldn't turn that down no matter how uneasy it made him.

Leaning the sword against the wall nearest his little futon, he wormed his way under the comforter and squirmed until he found what he was looking for. His very first day in the school house, Sensei had given him something – a house warming gift, it had been called. At first he hadn't wanted it, he'd told himself he didn't need something like that. He had to travel light, carrying something stupid like it around would be dumb.

But it turned out he must be some level of dumb because he'd taken the stupid little stuffed animal tiger and worse, it had grown on him. It was so soft, its fur made of a material he'd never felt before and he found himself running his fingers through the fur more often than not. He liked to wrap his arms around it and rub his face against it as he curled up to sleep in his usual fetal position – it was safer to sleep that way, made him look even smaller and easier to overlook. He liked its big golden eyes too, and the striped pattern of its pelt, the red shade of its coloring appealed to him.

He wasn't tired, but for once he had the luxury to rest without having to worry so much about where he was or what might be going on around him. He could relax a bit and so he did now that he was on his own. He didn't care what the boys thought of him and he felt better with the door closed, hiding him away should they come looking. Last, he maneuvered the comforter so that if he glanced up he could see the sword and once that was taken care of, he pulled the stuffed animal to his chest and prepared to doze until dinner.


	2. II

It was getting to be late in the day, the weather warm enough so that even though the sun was going to be setting soon, it would stay a comfortable temperature out. It had been a long day and though Gintoki should be tired, he wasn't. A walk actually sounded good to him, so he hiked the sword he was carrying up a little higher on his shoulder and stepped off the wooden porch into a pretty big fenced in yard. His feet were bare, he liked the feel of the lush grass between his toes and the loose gray yukata he wore kept him nice and cool, though it was a little baggy along his arms – no surprise there, a lot of his new clothes were too big on him. 

He wasn't five steps into the yard when he heard a pair of thuds and the scurry of feet over grass. He didn't turn around or even glance back, he knew his personal stalkers were after him. Well, Takasugi wasn't really a stalker, he was just jealous or something of Zura's fascination with 'the new kid.' Gintoki didn't get the whole thing and he really didn't care, either. Most the time he just wanted to be left alone, but that never seemed to happen. He'd known the two had been watching him, though he was pretty sure they thought he was too stupid to notice them. Let them think that, it only played in his favor. 

“Oi, where you going?” Zura asked, slowing to a walk on his right. 

Gintoki shrugged and walked out through the open gate, shifting the sword from his right shoulder to his left one, just to make sure it stayed safe. Takasugi appeared on Zura's other side and Gintoki didn't bother looking, he was already aware he was being glared at. Gintoki ignored them both and turned left down a dirt road that would take them to the edge of the village. Away from other people, basically. There were more trees out that way, too, which made it even more appealing, it felt safer there. 

“Your feet are getting dirty,” Zura said, nudging his cream covered shoulder lightly into Gintoki's.

Gintoki blinked down at his feet and replied offhandedly, “Mahh, they were already dirty.”

It was sort of amusing for him that no matter where he went, Zura liked to follow. After a couple short months, he was still getting used to having so many people around and talking to others still wasn't easy for him, but he was trying... sometimes. Not having to worry about food or finding a place to stay, it was still so overwhelming and there was always a thought in the back of his mind that it would all be taken away from him at any moment. He was waiting for it, to be honest, but despite his efforts to not get too comfortable, he was steadily becoming accustomed to this new life. 

“This is _so_ boring,” Takasugi groused as he stopped. Gintoki kept walking, he hadn't invited them along, they could go back for all he cared. Zura stayed with him, matching his pace and after a moment, Takasugi made a frustrated noise and caught up. “Where're we going?”

Zura answered, “You know we can't leave the village, so we'll have to stop at the edge.”

“I say we return the mongrel to his natural habitat and be done with him.”

“That's no way to talk about yourself.”

Gintoki snickered, he hadn't meant to, and glanced over at Zura who beamed at him so big it startled him into looking away again. Takasugi huffed and mumbled to himself, but shut up, thankfully. 

“Woah, halt!” Gintoki didn't stop, so Zura took a couple quick steps to get ahead and block his path. “We can't go any farther than this.”

Stopping, Gintoki sighed. “I know that.”

“Still bored,” Takasugi supplied. “Wish we had something to train with.”

“We could use sticks,” Zura offered. Looking at Gintoki, he asked, “What do you think?”

In answer, Gintoki shoved a finger up his nose and fixed Zura with his best deadpan stare. He'd been working on that look and it wasn't an easy one to perfect, but he was getting there!

“Don't do that,” Zura chastised, slapping his hand down. 

“Who cares about sticks or stupid practice swords,” Takasugi huffed, his cheeks puffing out slightly. “I want to use a real one.”

“We're not ready for those yet, you know that.”

“Yeah, but that doesn't seem to apply to _him!”_ Takasugi spat, glaring at Gintoki who glared right back and clutched the sword tighter to his body.

“He's just carrying it, what's the big deal?”

“If anyone should carry it, it should be me!”

“Ohh, not this again,” Zura groaned, shoulders sagging. “Just leave him alone already.”

“But he's such a scrawny brat!”

“Have you _seen_ yourself?”

“Whose side are you even on?”

“Neither.”

“He calls you Zura!”

“It's not Zura, it's Katsura!”

“Ugh, I know that! He's the one that doesn't!”

Gintoki listened to their banter in silence, intrigued and annoyed at the same time. They were both so loud and obnoxious, yet there was something he liked about it. He didn't trust either of them, they made him nervous and leery, but then he didn't have a reason to _really_ dislike them, not if he honestly thought about it. Even Takasugi hadn't done anything to warrant anything remotely close to hatred, which said something. 

Takasugi turned on him with a deep scowl and the other's mauve colored yukata made anger flushed cheeks stand out even more. “If him carrying it is no big deal, then it should be a big deal if I carried it!”

He reached for it and Gintoki bristled, taking a big step back.

“I wouldn't do that,” Zura warned, grabbing Takasugi's shoulder. 

Gintoki's left shoulder was canted back, his arm holding the sword to his body and he was glaring. His lip was curling and he could feel a snarl building up in his chest, though the sound itself hadn't escaped yet. Mess with him, fine, try and mess with _this_ sword, he wasn't having it. 

Takasugi paused, staring at him, then shook his head and lunged, making another grab for the sword. Gintoki balled up his right hand and punched Takasugi in the face as hard as he could.

“Told you to just leave him be,” Zura snapped, going to help Takasugi up.

Furious, Takasugi shoved Zura aside and rubbed his bruised cheek. “You jerk!”

Gintoki bent his legs so he was in a subtle crouch and prepared himself. It wasn't the first time he and Takasugi had physically fought, but it was the first time he'd landed a blow on the other's face. They fought about all kinds of things and it was usually Zura who broke them apart, but sometimes it took more than one person. 

With a cry, Takasugi leapt and tackled him to the ground where they rolled in the dirt. Hands grabbed at clothes and hair and Gintoki wasn't at all shy when it came to biting. They rolled some more and kicked, Gintoki doing his absolute best to keep the sword safe. He was ruthless when it came to protecting it. He wouldn't use it to strike out at Takasugi, but he used the rest of his body to keep it protected and in his possession. He could hear Zura yelling at them and trying to pull them apart, but they hardly even noticed. 

Having the sword wrapped under his left arm really put him at a disadvantage, so to make up for that, he let Takasugi roll them until the other was on top. Feigning defeat, he let his body go slack before reaching up with his right hand, snagging a fistful of Takasugi's hair and smashing their foreheads together in a headbutt. Takasugi cried out, falling back and Gintoki was on him in a second. He pinned Takasugi down with all his body weight and wedged the sword under the other's chin, pressing it down on his slim neck. 

A pair of hands grabbed onto his shoulders and Zura's voice registered, “Come on, come on, please let go!”

Takasugi hit him in the stomach, his other hand holding tight to one of Gintoki's wrists, and he reluctantly let Zura pull him off. He stood and hiked the sword against his left shoulder, silently fuming. Turning on his heel, the sun already halfway down, he set off back to the house. He was mad, yeah, but he also felt bad because Zura and Takasugi were really the only kids he knew. There were others in the class he'd been thrown into, but only those two had dared approach him. 

Regardless, he kept walking, secretly listening to the other two talk heatedly behind him. They weren't trying to catch up, but that was probably Zura's doing, wanting to keep them separated until they cooled off. Sniffing and rubbing his nose against his sleeve, he realized that he was filthy. And apparently his nose was bleeding because a smear came away on his yukata. Takasugi _had_ knocked him around pretty good, but he'd gotten the other worse, which made him preen because he was the smaller one, if only by a little. He'd gotten bigger since he'd been living with Sensei and he hoped he kept growing, he didn't like being so small. 

His anger ebbed away and was gone by the time he entered the yard, he never did stay angry long. As he walked through the grass, he dragged his feet to try and get some of the dirt off even though he knew it wouldn't really help all that much. Stepping up onto the porch, he set the sword down and leaned it against the wall so he could brush himself off. Judging by the lighting, it looked like Sensei was still out, but it was almost dark so he should be coming back soon. 

The light pad of feet across the yard alerted him even before Zura came trotting over. “Oi, you okay?”

Gintoki nodded, eying Zura warily. “It's just some dirt.”

“Yeah,” Zura snorted, pulling his own yukata sleeve to cover his hand. “And your nose is bleeding, hold still.”

Stiffening, Gintoki froze as Zura stepped up to him and tilted his head back before lightly dabbing with his sleeve. He didn't know what to do with himself, his hands wrung at his side and he wriggled in place, having to go cross-eyed to see the other because they were so close.

“I said hold still,” Zura reprimanded with a disarming smile. Gintoki could hear another set of footsteps coming over, light and cautious. He wanted to look, but Zura was holding his chin. “See? He's not so savage.”

“He fights like one,” Takasuki replied, staying in the grass just off the porch – or at least that was where his voice was coming from.

Gintoki was stalk still, body positioned between the other's and the sword, though he had a feeling Takasugi wouldn't be trying for it again. Zura dabbed at his nose a few more times, holding the cloth there when he needed to, then deemed him cured and released him. He immediately took a few steps back, putting some distance between him and them because try as he might, having others around really could be difficult.

Zura chuckled and obligingly stepped off the porch murmuring, “So skittish.” Louder, he asked, “You sure you're okay?” Gintoki nodded again, he didn't really notice any aches or pains, so there was nothing serious. “Good, then we'll see you in class tomorrow.”

Zura smiled a lot, Gintoki noticed, not for the first time. It wasn't a bad smile, either. Takasugi turned to follow Zura, paused, and turned back to Gintoki, his fists balled up at his sides. Gintoki blinked curiously, not feeling a need to go on the defensive despite Takasugi looking less than happy. His green eyes were blazing and his cheek was red and bruised and he was covered in dirt....

“You look stupid,” Gintoki found himself saying.

Takasugi's eyes went wide and his mouth parted in a little 'o', it was such a stunned expression, it made Gintoki snort softly. 

“Ah – w-we'll see how stupid I look when I'm holding that sword!” Takasugi threw back and they both just stared at each other before smirking. With a halfhearted wave, Takasugi turned away toward the gate with a snarky, “Watch your back, loser.”

“Only if you watch yours,” he replied, that weird smirk still on his face.

Takasugi brushed him off with a hand and Gintoki looked up just in time to see a supremely proud Zura duck just out of view.


	3. III

Gintoki sat on the edge of the porch, the sword propped up against his shoulder the way he liked. Zura was sitting on the ground in front of him, using the porch as support to lean against and Gintoki was becoming more resigned to that. He'd started off on his own, sitting outside to put his favorite part of training – mental preparation – into practice. It was a time where he had a legitimate excuse to close his eyes and do absolutely nothing and call it training. But only minutes after sitting down, Zura showed up with Takasugi on his heels and he wasn't even surprised to see them anymore.

For awhile there, Zura's proximity had been an issue and in many ways it still was. Zura always got closer and closer, scooting nearer during meals, walking closer to his side. Gintoki had kept his distance for a long while, as long as he could since other people made him uneasy, but Zura either couldn't take a hint or didn't care. So, it wasn't all that surprising that Zura had sat down directly in front of him when there was plenty of room around and away from him. Zura had pressed up next to him a few times and Gintoki was just waiting for the day the other boy sat down on top of him.

Not far off, he could hear stupid Takasugi making quiet little noises every so often and he _knew_ the other was bored. The two had come over so they could all do some afternoon studies together and keep each other on task or something. Really, Zura was the only one who actually studied, Takasugi pretended to, and Gintoki didn't study nor bother to pretend to. He was doing mental preparation and so what if that was what he did nearly every single time he 'studied.'

It was a nice afternoon, hence why he'd wanted to spend it outside. It had been really hot for the past week or so, but the heat wave had finally broken to a rush of cooler air and it was finally enjoyable to be outside. Some solitude would have been great, but that was getting harder to come by and being around others was slowly getting easier. Not all people, but certain ones, Sensei most of all.

Now that he wasn't alone, he didn't feel at ease enough to close his eyes and doze. He knew he could if he really wanted to, but Takasugi might try and take his sword again if he let his guard down any. So he looked out across the yard, the grass a light brown instead of lush green because of the lack of rain and abundance of sun. Gintoki had spent a lot of his time inside thanks to the heat. He burned easily and now that he had a place to stay, he didn't _have_ to go outside. Most of the time he preferred to stay inside with his sword and definitely his big blanket that he'd taken a fast and powerful liking to.

Zura made a noise then and Gintoki looked down at the back of the other's head, waiting for a reason for the noise. But Zura kept looking straight ahead and Gintoki... became tempted. He became _so_ tempted and... why not? Why shouldn't he?

Making a decision, he reached out, grabbed Zura's ponytail, and gave it a little yank.

“Ah! What are you doing? Let go!” He gave it another tug, pulling Zura's head back. “O-oi! Stop that!”

“It's long,” Gintoki said softly, studying the way the dark strands weaved around his fingers.

“Yeah, I'm growing it out. Now, let go!”

Gintoki didn't let go, he didn't want to, and only held tighter when Zura tried to lean forward. It amused him the way the other wriggled, but he didn't look away from the hair in his grasp. It wasn't like he was just noticing Zura had longer hair, it was something he'd actually been wondering about for awhile. Nearly everyone in their class and in the village had short hair, well, except for the girls. So it was weird that Zura was pretty much the only boy that had long hair. Sensei had long hair, longer than Zura's, but that was Sensei and that just sort of made sense.

“You can stop now,” Zura was saying as Gintoki grabbed a fistful of the hair on top of his head to keep him in place and slid off the hair tie.

The mass of raven hair fell loose, pooling around Zura's shoulders and Gintoki was much more entertained than he probably should have been by it. He'd never gotten to mess with anyone's hair before and already he rather liked it. He wasn't sure why, he just sort of _did,_ it was soft and easy to manipulate, there wasn't something to not like about it. He grabbed a fistful of hair in both hands and yanked them up so it looked like Zura had antennae coming out of his head.

“Isn't that sweet,” Takasugi taunted, “he's playing with your hair.”

“Hai, thanks for letting me know,” Zura scoffed, voice slightly strained as Gintoki twisted the hair into shapes. “S-Sakata-san, why don't you try braiding it?”

Gintoki paused in his recreation of a triangle and shifted his weight from side to side, unsure what to do because of course he didn't know how to braid. He'd seen them before, but to actually do one, he didn't even know where to start.

“Yeah, braid it,” Takasugi jeered, his small arms crossing. “Put some flowers in there, you'll be the prettiest girl in class.”

“No, I wouldn't, no one can take that spot from you.”

Takasugi made a frustrated noise under his breath. “At least I don't have someone playing with my hair.”

“Right, you only wish you had someone playing with your hair.”

“Pft, whatever....”

Gintoki's gaze flicked over to Takasugi, but he remained disinterested throughout the exchange. The other was sitting with his back against the wall wearing a light green yukata and their class notebook was open in his lap. Gintoki couldn't remember where his own notebook was, but Zura's was laying on the ground next to his tan colored bag. Zura was always carrying around books and things, pulling them out when he had the time to read – always with the reading and the being practical nonsense.

He must have been still too long because Zura craned his head to look back at him with one eye through his fringe.

“Do you know how to braid?” Gintoki shifted again and shook his head. “Oh, it's easy! I can show you, but, uhh, you'll have to let go of my hair first.”

Reluctantly, Gintoki relaxed his fingers as Zura slowly moved forward, the strands sliding against his skin without snagging a single tangle. He felt like his own hair was full of knots and snarls since he was a natural perm and he shuddered to imagine what it would be like long. It was far easier to keep it short and it was nice having it actually cut rather than the hacking sheer he'd done himself until then. He knew he'd never grow his hair out like Zura or Sensei, he saw it as more of a hazard than anything. It'd get in his face when he moved, blind him when he needed to see, and he just couldn't have that happening, it could cost him too much.

“Are you listening?”

He blinked at Zura, his head once more tilted back to look at him, and ah, right, he should be paying attention, shouldn't he? Nodding, he shifted the sword against his shoulder so he could get into a more comfortable position and sat up straighter, the very picture of attentive.

Looking back to the front, Zura reached up to his hair and divided it into three chunks. “There, you just do this, then alternate moving each outer row of hair to the middle.”

Gintoki watched as Zura took the left outer row and pulled it to the middle, then took the right outer row to do the same thing. He did it slowly at first and went faster the farther down he got until there was nothing left to braid. It was smooth with hardly a hair out of place and Gintoki hesitated only a moment before reaching out to touch it, running his fingers along the bumps and curves. It felt as smooth as it looked and his fingers really stuck out when cast against the color of black ink, he liked the way it looked.

“See? Easy,” Zura said just before unraveling the braid. “Your turn.”

Glancing at Takasugi who had been watching the whole time from over his raised notebook, Gintoki met his gaze and huffed when the other immediately looked away. The second Gintoki turned his attention back to Zura's hair, he felt Takasugi's eyes on him again and though he was tempted to look up, he didn't. Instead, he smoothed out Zura's hair and carefully divided it into three chunks. He wasn't the smartest one in class, but he wasn't so stupid that he couldn't duplicate something he saw a demonstration of. If Zura could do it, he could too... even if his chunks were a little disproportional.

“Pull it tighter,” Zura instructed. “Too loose and it'll fall apart.”

Gintoki knew Zura was only trying to teach him, but he'd discovered long ago that he didn't like people telling him what to do and Zura had a _tone._ Every once in awhile the other boy could sound so snooty and that just irked Gintoki, rubbed him the wrong way each and every time. So, when he probably should have just taken the direction and moved on, he ended up _yanking_ the next notch in the braid so tight Zura jolted and yelped.

“Gah! Too tight! Too tight! Ease up!” Zura sputtered and Gintoki did because mission accomplished, the _tone_ was gone.

Takasugi was cackling to himself, but Gintoki ignored him as he undid the middle of the braid and started again from there. Not too loose, not to firm, he found a rhythm and worked his way downward. It got harder as he got to the bottom, the straight strands not wanting to do what he told them to as they frayed outward. He frowned at it, some of the notches looked jagged and out of place, so he released the braid completely and tried again. It was easier the second time and he was faster at it. Zura was holding up a book while Gintoki worked, adjusting himself by trial and error. By the third attempt, it looked like a duplicate of what Zura had done and it was with a soft sigh that he clumsily used the hair band to tie it off.

“Done?” Zura asked, raising a hand back to run it over the braid. He hummed and Gintoki found himself strangely anxious as he waited for a verdict. “Feels good, how does it look?”

He didn't respond and when Zura looked back at him, he nodded, his hands in his sleeves and the sword fitted snugly in the crook of his left elbow. Zura had bangs coming down on either side of his face and Gintoki absentmindedly decided that the other would look odd without them. Actually, Zura would look odd with short hair altogether, not _bad_ , he wasn't sure Zura would look particularly bad with any hairstyle, but odd, surely.

“It's okay to talk, you know.”

Yeah, he knew, but it was another one of those things he wasn't used to. Talking, having people to talk to, especially ones that actually _wanted_ him to speak, it was weird. He never really felt the need to say anything, either, he was usually content to just sit back and listen. That was what he'd always done before coming to the village, wait quietly and observe to decide how best to adjust to his environment. Dealing with other people made that so difficult, it complicated and changed his usual habits. It was like being perpetually on guard and the only time he really felt a sense of ease was when Sensei was around.

Zura sighed and turned back to his books, the braid flowing down his neck. “You really should study or you'll fall behind.”

“He's already behind,” Takasugi scoffed, words muffled by his notebook. “The idiot can barely read let alone write.”

“Right, but how many times has he kicked your butt?”

“I – _what?_ None! Zero times!”

Zura didn't look up from jotting something down and hummed. “Yeah, sure. Whatever you say.”

They always talked about him like he wasn't there, but he never said anything to correct them. The two were obviously good friends, always bickering, and sometimes he enjoyed listening. Not this time though, he was actually starting to get a little irked and he wasn't sure why. Yawning, he clamored to his feet, the motion silencing both of them for some reason, and headed inside.

“Oi! Where are –“

“Let him go,” Zura interrupted, head turned to watch.

The last thing he heard before the door closed was Takasugi's loud _bahh_ of annoyance. He wouldn't be gone long, really he just wanted to grab something that had the power to make him feel better no matter what. He'd left the others in various places before, in the yard, in class, and he didn't view it as ditching them. Sometimes he just really needed to be by himself, but more often than not, he found himself leaving them less. He almost felt guilty up and walking away without a word, leaving them hanging with no explanation.

Moments later, he was walking back outside and caught the look of surprise on both their faces. Either because of his return or the plate of dango he had between his hands, he wasn't sure. Dango was something Sensei typically kept on hand for him since so much of his diet had become sweets once he'd discovered them in all their glory. He set the plate on the porch and plopped back down behind Zura, knowing that if he moved away, the other would most likely follow.

Zura was staring at him, eyes flitting to the plate and back up, and he gently nudged the plate closer with one hand while he devoured a dango ball with the other. It amused him the way Zura looked for utensils, Gintoki never really used them, choosing instead to do what he was used to and eat with his hands. Zura eventually plucked one of the balls from the plate and made a happy noise as he munched and went back to reading, a prayer of thanks mumbled in there somewhere.

“Ah....”

Gintoki glanced over to Takasugi who was practically on all fours, staring at the plate hungrily. His mouth was dropped open as if he wanted to say something, maybe ask if he could have some, but the words weren't coming out. Snorting, Gintoki tipped his head to the food and Takasugi hastily crawled over and snagged a piece, not hesitant when it came to using his hands. See? Gintoki didn't need words to communicate. The irked and annoyed feeling left him the more dango he ate and the other two were quiet, finally giving him the silence he'd wanted. He held his sword tighter now that Takasugi was closer, but the other wasn't paying it any attention and together they ate while the late afternoon sun slowly sank. 


	4. IV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's cold and getting up has never been one of Gintoki's favorite things to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY BIRTHDAY KIHENTAI

**IV**

Gintoki was inside curled up in his blanket and he wasn't going anywhere. He knew what was outside the sanctity of his comforter and he wasn't at all interested. So when he heard footsteps coming his way, he held his tiger closer, and sunk deeper in the dark depth of soft fabric. He could see out a tiny crack created by his pillow and when the person walked in he immediately knew it was Zura. It was easy to tell because of the stride and if it were Takasugi, that dummy would probably be running over to tackle him or something.

“Sleepyhead! Get up!”

“Can't! Sleeping!”

“Aren't you coming outside?” Zura asked, lifting an edge of the comforter to peek under it.

Gintoki hissed at him as the light that came in. “No!”

He grabbed the blanket and rolled, wrapping it around him in a tight cocoon where nothing could get to him. Except maybe a persistent Zura who was actually taking the time to unroll him from his self-induced prison where he was clutching his tiger. Zura dumped him onto his futon and pulled the blanket out of his reach toward the small closet. Sitting up on his knees, Gintoki rubbed an eye with the back of his hand and stuck his bottom lip out, his tiger draped over his other arm.

Zura was staring at him triumphantly, he was wearing a blue yukata and had a green scarf around his neck. As always, his hair was pulled back in a short ponytail and his cheeks had the tiniest hint of red in them.

“Come on sleepy thing, we gotta go get Takasugi.”

Yawning, Gintoki unceremoniously fell onto his side, his head hitting the pillow with a _thump_. “No.”

Zura scoffed and opened the closet to pull out the aforementioned yukata and he threw it right into Gintoki's face. “You know I'll keep pestering you until you do, so you might as well just give up.”

“Logic is stupid,” Gintoki grumbled.

But as much as he hated to admit it, he knew Zura was right. Rousing himself, he sat up again and though he didn't want to, he got himself to stand. Just in time, too, because Zura pushed him off the futon and began putting it away.

“Would you just change already?”

Scowling, Gintoki took his tiger to the closet and put it away, always in the same spot so he'd never lose it. While Zura was busy with the futon, he took off his sleepwear and slipping into the yukata.

“Is it cold out?”

“Yeah,” Zura replied, putting the pillow on top of the folded futon. “It snowed a lot last night.”

Gintoki's hands flailed on the ties and he jerked back, staring at Zura with wide eyes. “S-snow?”

“That's what I said, yes.”

“I don't like snow!”

Zura rolled his eyes and went back to the closet, pushing Gintoki out of the way once more. “Oh, you'll get over it.”

“But... but it's cold!”

“Indeed, it usually is when it snows. But I'll find something to make sure you stay warm enough.”

“I don't wanna go out.”

“You're already so pale, you can't afford to stay inside,” Zura lectured, rifling through the closet. “Aha! I knew I saw an extra one in here! And look, it's red!”

“Yaaay....” Gintoki muttered unenthusiastically, eying the scarf Zura procured and hedging away from it.

“Stop that,” Zura chided. “Pay attention so you know how to do this.”

“Because you know _everything_.”

Zura's expression flattened and he huffed, “Yeah, so listen up.” He grabbed either end of the scarf and threw the middle part up over Gintoki's head, pulling them closer together. “There. Then you wrap one side around like this... and tuck it in like so... and voila! You've been scarfed.”

Gintoki couldn't have been more bemused. The scarf covered his face, stopping just below his eyes and he felt stupid, if not smothered. Growling, he pulled the scarf down and pulled at it to loosen it so it hung more naturally around his neck. It was a nice scarf, soft, and it fit nicely once it wasn't trying to suffocate him.

“Good,” Zura affirmed, shoving socks into Gintoki's chest. “Put these on, get your shoes, and let's _go._ ”

“So bossy,” he muttered as he lifted one foot, then the other to don the socks.

His shoes were by the door, so he left his room and shuffled his way there, taking his sweet time because he really didn't want to go. Zura was right behind him, trying to hurry him, but he just wouldn't be hurried. When he reached his shoes, he was slow to slip them on, checking and double checking them. Zura put his own shoes on, then opened the door, allowing a frigid rush of air inside, and Gintoki absolutely recoiled.

It was a winter wonderland out there! It was freezing and there was snow absolutely everywhere, he _hated_ snow. It was wet and cold, it was blinding when the sun shone on it, there was nothing good about it. Especially when it froze and got all slick where he slipped on it all the time because it was icy, but didn't _look_ like ice.

Zura stepped out onto the porch with a soft, “Come on.”

Gintoki didn't move. “Don't wanna.”

Zura marched back and got behind Gintoki, all but shoving him out of the door with both hands on his shoulders. “I refuse to be late to any of our classes, even if we just have a substitute right now. You'll be fine, it's just a little snow.”

There was definitely more than just a little, snow covered everything in thick sheets and layers, and _wonderful!_ It was _still_ snowing! He didn't want to be out there at all, but there was no turning back because Zura had already shut the door, cutting off his only real escape. The worst thing though: there had to be a breeze. It was glacial and cruel, coming from the south in relentless gusts that blew snow into his face, getting it all up in his hair and clothes.

After Zura gave him another push, he stepped off the porch and regretted ever having woken up. The voyage was long and grueling even though they weren't going far, his only consolation being the satisfying crunch of snow beneath his feet and he liked to imagine he was killing it. His hands were buried deep in his yukata sleeves, but the wind blew right through him. He tucked his mouth beneath the scarf and though that helped, it wasn't enough because he was still cold.

He was chilled and shivering by the time they got to Takasugi's and he wanted so much to run inside for shelter. But naturally Takasugi had been waiting and walked right out wearing his blue yukata and thick blue scarf, closing Gintoki's faint hope to hide from the elements. The yukata they were all wearing was supposed to be the thickest one, but it sure didn't feel that way to Gintoki. He tried to hold still as Takasugi approached, he didn't want to look weak, but there was an unstoppable jig wriggling through his body, making him bounce not so subtly from foot to foot, sure that if he stopped for even a second he'd freeze and become a Gintoki-sicle.

“What's your problem, Sakata?”

Gintoki's teeth chattered ceaselessly, so much he could barely talk after moving the scarf down a little. “F-f-f-f-fre-e-ezi-i-ing-g-g.”

“It's not that cold,” Takasugi chastised just as he shivered. “You big baby.”

“S-s-shu-ut up,” Gintoki snapped back, arms wrapping tighter around himself.

“Stop trying to talk, you sound stupider than usual.”

“N-no, _y-you_ s-so-oun-nd stup-p-id-der tha-an usu –“

“Just stop before you hurt yourself.”

Gintoki scowled hard at him, but didn't speak, mainly because his jaws were clicking together so hard he couldn't. Zura moved in front of him and tightened his yukata, wrapping it more snugly around him, but it did little good. He almost looked worried with his little scowl and pinched brows.

“Still to scrawny,” Zura murmured. Glancing over at Takasugi, he said louder, “He'll never make it through the discipline demonstration the sub is giving like this, he'll get sick.”

“Ah, okay... hold on,” Takasugi said, looking a tad unsure of himself before he turned to the house and disappeared inside. Less than a minute later he appeared again with an umbrella in tow. He opened it up when he reached them, cheeks slightly red as he held it above them mumbling lowly, “Here, try this.”

Standing there shaking, Gintoki blinked owlishly a few times, honestly surprised. With Takasugi on one side, Zura on the other, and the umbrella now blocking the wind and snow, it was almost getting warmer. The weird thing was, the warmth wasn't coming from the outside, it was coming from the _inside._ He felt... what did he feel? Taken care of, maybe, or special somehow – neither Takasugi nor Zura had to do anything for him and yet they were of their own free will. He hadn't asked them to, they just _did it_ , like it was natural and that warmth inside him expanded.

Emboldened by the feeling of gratitude or whatever it was, he reached out and wrapped his left arm around Zura, drawing him in closer, unable to stop a small smile from stretching across his half-frozen face, hidden beneath the scarf. Takasugi was already close, had been the whole time now that Gintoki was really taking notice of it. The smile Zura gave him was an almost shocked, genuinely happy one, but he didn't make a comment.

“We're going to be late if we don't hurry,” Takasugi said, pressing into Gintoki's side to get them moving.

Zura yelped and immediately ushered them along, both their bodies warm lines along Gintoki's sides. His arms crossed once more, hands digging into his sleeves, and he was still shivering, his smile gone to be replaced by a moue, but buried inside him was a happy heart beating furiously and the light flush to his cheeks admittedly wasn't entirely from the cold.  


End file.
